5/14/13

Coyote Kisses - Thundercolor (EP)Release Date: 2013-05-05Label(s): SoMeta RecordsGenre(s): Electronica (Glitchstep)Track List1. Diving at Night (2:40)2. Stay With You (4:19)3. This Is How You Know (5:02)4. Changing Guard (4:11)Coyote Kisses crept onto the electronic dance music platform with their melodic electronica track "Acid Wolfpack" a combined synth and electro medley. As ear-pleasing as the track was, releases from Coyote Kisses were few and far between. Their new album Thundercolor marks their first multi-track effort and definitely worth the listen.When first listeningyou can easily hear the creativity behind each track. The four songs have a distinctive sound that makes it hard to put them collectively in an electronic sub-genre. Rather, each track is simply a 'Coyote Kisses track.'"Diving at Night" is a slow-rising introduction sounding a lot like an 80's theme. It features a small glimpse into what is to come without committing to a full-length track. The meat of this release are the two middle tracks. The driving excellence of Thundercolor is its use of vocal distortions. The combination of the vocal range and the mysteriousness of the lyrics (as it's often too split to understand) makes the vocals float like a harmonious ghost. The song's are strong by themselves, but this addition leaves a lasting impression in the listener's ear. "Stay With You" is a powerful fusion of female vocal riffs and a glitch jam; a very strong song. "This is How You Know" follows suit, another strong track. Here the vocals are male with a bouncy pop feel leaving a happy feeling everytime I listen. Both tracks are some of the strongest I've heard all year, and perhaps in a while. You can be sure they'll be making an appearance on the top tracks by year's end."Changing Guard" is also in the same vein as the intro with a slowly 80's style progressing melody. There's a lot to like, but it is not your typical electronica track. It has an end-credits feel with rising guitar riffs that remind me of Top Gun. It makes a fitting conclusion to an epic set. As one of my favorite releases of the year this album is not to be missed.

5/9/13

JELO, Savant, & Adam K - Four Days (EP)Release Date: 2013-05-06Label(s): SectionZ RecordsGenre(s): Electro HouseTrack List1. Baddery (3:43) (Savant and JELO)2. Damage (4:11) (Savant and Adam K)The combination of three very talented electronic music producers should yield an impressive release. Though three names brandish the cover, only two artists contribute to each track with Savant being the constant. It would have been interesting to hear all three collaborate to each track, but I'll take what I can get. Savant has been a favorite of mine for the past year largely thanks to Vario and The Alchemist. There is plenty to sample from Savant as he has the most prolific production schedule of any artist with four releases this year alone. His newest, 4 Days EP, is a mixed-bag.The first track is "Baddery," the collaboration of Savant with JELO. The track starts with an ominous male voice taunting the listener in rhythm. It slowly fades into a basic electronic house beat with grinding acid synths. The occasional flutter or high-pitched squeal gives the song a dance-floor feel. At around the 1:35 mark the song breaks into a classic Savant synth melody before changing into a weird, random breakdown. The song finishes off fluctuating between the three or four different sound pattern. It fades out as an unimpressive track.

The second track, "Damage," features the collaboration of Savant and Adam K and is the better of the two. It is more progressive, more pattern-based electro. Normally, that's not an issue but the two songs contrast immensely; to the point where the album's feel doesn't fit the bill. A nice Savant touch includes the distorted vocals sprinkled throughout giving it a 'sweet' feeling. The song is pretty cliche in terms of style and flips between the soft break and the heavier bridges. It is decidedly better than "Baddery," but still not the riveting jam one would expect from such a collaboration.

5/7/13

2013 has been an illustrious year for the electronic dance music scene. Plenty of new artists have wowed us with their production talent. Established crowd-pleasing acts have released electro anthems that only increase their popularity. As we approach the halfway point of the year, let's take a look at some of the best dance tracks to come out so far in 2013.

Pegboard Nerds; Tristam - Razor Sharp (Original Mix) - SingleRelease Date: 2013-05-01Label(s): MonstercatGenre(s): Glitch HopFor Fans of: Knife Party, Splitbreed, Dallask, Track List1. Razor Sharp (4:41)Some electronic music labels boast an impressive lineup. You read off the names and can instantly associate the acts with incredible tracks. Monstercat is one such label. Their acts have included Krewella, Au5, Splitbreed, Stereotronique, and Solero to name a few. The focus here, though, is the combined efforts of Pegboard Nerds and Tristam. The Nerds are one of the more accomplished acts in the electro house/glitch hop scene having already dished out several tracks in the past few months. Such tunes were instant jam anthems notably with "We are One,""Close Encounter,""Self Destruct," and "20K." When Pegboard announced a few weeks ago that they were working on a new track with fellow labelmate,Tristam, I was excited. Would it be another kick-pounding anthem Pegboard could add to their already stellar set list? And would the collaboration with accomplished Tristam blow the lid off the track? Razor Sharp is indeed a heavy-hitter and a rousing crowd-pleaser for fans of electro hop and its bastard child, glitch hop. The song starts with an obligatory drum-fused build with plenty of hints to the coming drop. Some string and strong melodic synths break up the pattern before segueing into the song's heart. Right before the penultimate moment, a children's choir pipes in with a high-pitched "ra-zor sharp!" before spilling into glitchy moombahton madness. The track then intertwines its drop with a repeat of the build and pre-drop chorus. It was a bit surprising the song did not drop "harder," or at least more often, but it does the genre admirably. The inclusion of Tristam, no doubt, keeps the song more on the melodic/progressive edge than a harder glitch listeners are used to with Pegboard. Regardless, it is still a top track worth listening to.Grade: B+Razor Sharp is available for digital download on Beatport.

5/6/13

Knife Party - Haunted House (EP)Release Date: 2013-05-06Label(s): Earstorm/Big Beat RecordsGenre(s): Electro HouseTrack List1. Power Glove (4:21)2. LRAD (5:15)3. EDM Death Machine (4:23)4. Internet Friends (VIP) (5:00)
The emerging electronic house duo Knife Party, consisting of Rob Swire and Gareth McGrillen, continues on their impressive musical adventure with the release of their new EP Haunted House. The band's previous venture, Rage Valley, was an incredible entry for the electro house genre thus it was only fitting to hope that Haunted Housefollow similar suit.

The first track, "Power Glove," is a resounding electric jam in the same vein as the kickstarter from Rage, "Rage Valley" (or even "Centipede"). With the incessant echo of a menacing voice repeating "now you're playing with power," this pumped-up dance track is a definite anthem tune paying homeage to Nintendo's archaic gaming appendage. With swift kicks and an energetic feel, Power Glove certainly is a solid way to start the album. The next song, "LRAD," is a mixture of electro house and jacked house with some minimalistic foundations. Heavy acid synths periodically sprinkled about provide some solace from the dark ambience the untraditional chorus delivers. LRAD swings back-and-forth between the almost moombahton roots with a melodic take on Chicago-house-meets-electro-house. "EDM Death Machine," is certainly a spiritual successor to Modern Talking's "Internet Friends." In the same vein, it starts off with an robotic, metallic male voice foreshadowing the ultimate demise of several cliched phrases, many of which are overused in the electronic dance music scene (such as 'dropping the bass'). A thunderous kick propels the monotonous tune into a change of pace halfway-through; a poetic bridge that has throwback roots to early 90's techno music. This nostalgic rift could be an ironic tribute to the vast difference in early to modern electronic music, much as the opening monologue alluded to a change for the future.

Unfortunately, the musical journey ends on a sour note. The final track of Haunted House is a VIP cut of Knife Party's most popular track Internet Friends (and with its immediate placement after EDM Death Machine, you can hear the similarities of the voices between these two tracks). While the track certainly is a must-have for any Knife Party fan, chances are they've already heard it a dozen times. Surely it would have been better to end the EP with an original track instead. With a year between their releases, it's barely enough to get by with the few original features they put out.

Overall, the effort of providing fans of their work some EDM solace was a success. With power anthems in both Power Glove and EDM Death Machine, there's enough substance here to last us a few months. However, the audience will desire something soon before the cries for originality will become too thunderous to ignore. As with any dance music album these days, you can purchase this four-track EP on Beatport via digital download.

After a yearlong hiatus, I've decided to restart the machine that is Music Faze. Though I stopped writing, I continued to listen to EDM (electronic dance music) with the same intensity. There is still a lot to be said (and written) about the popularity of dubstep, house, electro, glitch hop, and the numerous other sub-genres that encompass dance music. For now, my focus will be to continue the same trend as before: sharing EDM music I come across and allowing you, the listener, to decide if it's worthy of your own ears. For those of you who are stumbling across this music blog for the first time, know that there's much more to come (and soon). If you've managed to remain a fan all this time, I thank you for your loyalty. Stay tuned for more content, more posts, and especially more electronic music.

2/9/12

Came across this today. This is a hot, hot, hot song. It's got a great disco backing that, surprisingly, does not get old. Disco Fries has established themselves as a hot commodity in the disco/dance/club/electronic industry. Another thing worth mentioning is the flavor and power the vocals add. Normally I am not a huge fan of male vocals in electronic dance tracks; they seem to remove the strength of the backing music. This Niles Mason, however, does a splendid job. Check this track out, definitely will see this again in the top ten tracks for February.

2/6/12

Big stuff from UK electronic house producer Feed Me. He's got news about his new tour "With Teeth" and is releasing his newest EP on mau5trap records today. He's already gaining traction for releasing his first single with Gemini late last week titled "Whiskers" and "One Click Headshot." Both singles will be on his EP "Teeth." Though, as of this morning, the EP doesn't appear to be up yet on Beatport on the mau5trap website, I will keep everyone posted as to when it does.

2/3/12

Instead of the normal Weekly Faze, I've decided to announce the top ten tracks of January 2012. This list is one I think most of us can agree on. There's a load of talent on this list, and I am proud to be a member of such an emerging, evolving community. Music Faze presents to you the top ten dance tracks from January 2012....

2/1/12

Last week, I posted on Filo & Peri's new single on Beatport "Sub Zero." It was a pretty hot mess and featured some signature sounds that showcased raw talent. Just a week later they've got a preview for a new track "What You Came Here For." This new sound is a mix of dutch and hands up club, with jumping melodies and blaring kicks. Check out there new song below and follow them on Facebook as well.